On Friday 17th June 2016, McGarr Solicitors attended before Mr. Justice McGovern in the High Court on behalf of Digital Rights Ireland and the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a US non-profit. Counsel applied for leave to file papers to support applications by our clients to be joined as amici curiae in the case of Data Protection Commissioner -v- Facebook Ireland Limited and Maximillian Schrems.

The DPC is seeking a reference to the CJEU arising from Mr. Schrems’ complaint regarding the transfer of his data to the US by Facebook Ireland Ltd. She is seeking a decision of the CJEU on the compatibility of the “Standard Contract Clauses” mechanism with the Data Protection Directive, EU Treaties and the Charter of Fundamental Rights.

The application follows the prior decision by the CJEU last year arising from a case taken by Mr. Schrems against the DPC to strike down the ‘adequacy decision’ of the EU Commission underpinning the Safe Harbour system. Digital Rights Ireland had been joined by Mr Justice Hogan as an amicus party in those earlier proceedings.